SUPPORTING SAVILE ROW AND THE BEST OF BRITISH
The traditional hub of tailoring is due a revisit, says Stephen Doig
It seems trite to focus on the ins and outs of cuff lengths and jacket vents at a time when the world is panicking about Covid-19. While certain facets of the fashion industry pose for cutesie selfies in surgical masks or don Corona beer-branded attire for the Instagram lols, the virus is having a very real impact on the luxury market, which could contribute to a global recession. And one of Britain’s most traditional and august stretches devoted to sartorialism, Savile Row, is feeling the effects.
Kilgour, founded in 1882 and existing under its current guise since 2002, closed its showroom this week. The brand, which for a while was spearheaded by the pioneering
Carlo
Brandelli and created some of the most contemporary and sleek interpretations of traditional tailoring, with a rock star following, cited “challenging trading conditions in the bespoke clothing market and supply chain issues affecting the delivery of garments to and from markets in the Far East that seem unlikely to be resolved in the short term”. Rising rents on the Row are rumoured to have played a part, and last year the stalwart Hardy Amies closed shop. Certainly, the future of the tailoring institutions that inhabit the world’s most famous suiting address has been in jeopardy before, thanks to the changing whims of fashion and the homogenisation of the West End. But these new tremors are backed by a threat that no one knows how to handle in the form of supply chains being decimated. So where should we be looking? The elder statesman of the Row, Gieves & Hawkes, is a good place to start – it’s been in the business of kitting out our men for 235 years, and alongside its stately suits today offers a fine line of more casual pieces – sleek knits, holiday shirts and bomber jackets. Similarly, a few doors down, Hackett has taken up residence in the former Hardy Amies emporium, offering its take on handsome British style, from elegant suits to off-duty attire – particularly with regards to British sporting pursuits, from polo to the Henley Regatta. Kathryn Sargent, too, has become the first female tailor to put her name above the door and debut her shop on Savile Row.
And while traditional suiting has always been at the heart of what the Row offers, a host of brands are offering more accessible touchpoints for your wardrobe. The Savile Row Company, alongside its suit roster, has a range of elegant shirts, some of which can be ordered made to measure online. Likewise Cad & The Dandy, which modernises the bespoke process by travelling to your office to showcase the cloth and take measurements.
The sensibility of Savile Row has always been to buy less and better, which couldn’t be more pertinent in 2020, and now it’s more relevant than ever.